Critics skewered the man for risking his child’s safety – and the organisers for somehow missing the baby until more than a third into the race. -- PHOTO: EVERYBITLOCAL/YOUTUBE
HONG KONG (The Straits Times/ANN): In the latest edition of “What was he thinking?”, a man ran the Standard Chartered marathon in Hong Kong on Sunday (Jan 18) with his baby in a carrier strapped to his chest.
What may have seemed to him like a heartwarming, core-memory dad moment struck race organisers differently. They removed him from the course and later banned him from future events.
Once the video of the run went viral online, the internet unloaded.
Critics skewered the man for risking his child’s safety – and the organisers for somehow missing the baby until more than a third into the 42.195km race.
The video shows the man, wearing spectacles that keep slipping down his nose, running with a baby in a front carrier, a backpack on his back and a mobile phone in his hand.
The baby’s head can be seen bobbing up and down as the runner moves along the course. A race bib was pinned to the baby’s windproof cover.
The runner was spotted at various points along the route, including on the West Kowloon Highway towards Stonecutters Island, between the 5km and 10km marks, and later between the 10km and 15km points.
According to official live-tracking data, the runner started the race at 6.25am in the first wave of the men’s full marathon and reached 15km in about two hours and 20 minutes, averaging roughly 9 minutes per km, or about 6.5 kmh.
Race officials instructed him to leave the course shortly after the 15km mark, organisers said. He did not finish the race.
The Hong Kong, China Association of Athletics Affiliates, which organises the marathon, said the man – who was identified only by his surname Wang – was disqualified for violating competition rules that prohibit runners from being accompanied by infants, children under 16 or anyone not wearing a valid race bib.
“Race officials requested the violated (sic) runner to retire and leave the racecourse immediately during (the) event to ensure safety,” the association said in a statement.
The association later confirmed, according to the South China Morning Post, that the runner was banned from future events.
The incident sparked a heated debate online, with many condemning the runner’s actions as irresponsible.
“I can’t believe he did that. He totally disregarded the baby’s safety. The baby’s brain is still developing, and the baby cannot take the bouncing up and down pressure,” one commented on the YouTube page of TVB News in Hong Kong.
“He should be arrested for child endangerment,” the commenter wrote.
Another commented: “I can’t imagine what it’s like for the baby to go through 42km of rough ride, sun and car tunnel air.”
Although the videos show the runner supporting the baby’s neck with one hand and moving at nearly walking speed, critics said the risk remained significant.
The website Waldron Chiropractic warns against carrying infants in any backpack-style carrier when running.
“A baby’s body is not adjusted to the cyclic pattern that is a part of running and jogging. This motion can do damage to the baby’s neck, spine and/or brain,” it said.
While some races allow parents to participate with children in strollers under controlled conditions, marathon rules generally prohibit runners from carrying infants on the course because of the potential danger to participants and spectators alike.
On a Reddit thread about running with infants, one user said it is “not a good idea”.
“Seems like you’d be jarring the baby needlessly. Even jogging strollers have an age restriction (no babies younger than six months, if I remember right), due to babies not having the musculature to support their heads on their necks,” he said.
“I tried running with my kid on my back with one of those carriers. Your knees will hurt like hell. Plus the kid screamed the whole time. It was a stupid idea and something I will not repeat,” said another.
But there were those who praised the man for his commitment to running, posting heart and clapping emojis.
One described him as “the real winner”, though conceded that what he did violated race rules. -- The Straits Times/ANN
